Time Warner Cable Launches Showtime’s Internet Video Service

Operator adds Showtime Anytime, under agreement reached with CBS in September after monthlong blackout

Here’s one silver lining for Time Warner Cable customers out of its bruising fight with CBS: The MSO, under the deal it eventually reached with the Eye, has launched Showtime Networks’ authentication service to let subscribers access the premium cabler’s programming anywhere.

TW Cable subs nationwide were left without Showtime during the month of August, as the cable operator battled with the Eye over contract terms for carriage of CBS stations, Showtime and other cable nets. The parties resolved the dispute Sept. 2, but the showdown contributed to Time Warner Cable’s worst quarterly subscriber losses ever.

Showtime subscribers with TW Cable — for no extra cost — now have access to hundreds of hours of the network’s programming, as well as live broadcast of both the East and West Coast feeds of the linear network on any computer, iPhone, iPad, Android smartphones and tablets, and Kindle Fire tablets over any Internet connection. Subscribers with Bright House Networks, which has an arrangement with TW Cable to piggyback on the larger operator’s programming deals, also now can access the service.

While it’s too late for customers who dropped TW Cable during the CBS blackout, those who have stuck it out can catch up on episodes they missed. The lineup includes current and past seasons original series including “Homeland” (pictured above), “Dexter,” “Ray Donovan” and “Masters of Sex,” as well as movies, sports, documentaries and specials.

Showtime still trails rival HBO on the “TV Everywhere” front. Other operators that offer Showtime Anytime include Comcast, DirecTV, AT&T U-verse, Verizon FiOS and Cablevision; still missing are providers including Dish Network, Cox and Charter.